Maharshi: Why should it be done? It is actuated only by fear. Even in solitude there is the fear of intrusion by othersand of solitude being spoiled. Moreover, how are thoughts to be erased in solitude? Should it not done in the present environment?

Maharshi: Ego is not. Otherwise do you admit of two selves? How can there be avidya in the absence of the ego? If you begin to inquire, the avidya which is already non existent, will be found not to be or you will say it has fled away.

Ignorance pertains to the ego. Why do you think of the ego and also suffer? What is ignorance again? It is that which is non existent. However, the worldly life requires the hypothesis of avidya. Avidya is only our ignorance and nothing more. It is ignorance or forgetfulness of the Self. Can there be darkness before the Sun?

Maharshi: Take care of the present, the future will take care of itself.

Devotee: The future is the result of the present. So, what should I do to make it good? Or should I keep still?

Maharshi: Whose is the doubt? Who is it that wants a course of action? Find the doubter. If you hold the doubter, thedoubts will disappear. Having lost hold of the Self, the thoughts afflict you, the world is seen, doubts arise, also anxiety for the future. Hold fast to the Self, these will disappear.

'Navo navo bhavati' say the Vedas, of Reality. 'It is new, ever new'. Maharshin while extolling this statement, pointed outthat the conception of 'new' presumes the concept of 'old'. Thus Maharshi explained that navo navo means 'fresh and everfresh.' Reality is always fresh, like a rose in bloom. Freshness is the essence of Reality. 'Behold I make all things new', saysthe Biblical God.

Sri Bhagavan says the Supreme Sage is ever born and daily renewed. Association (Satsangh) with such beings helps usnot to acquire something new but to rediscover this eternal freshness. This is the importance and liveliness of satsanghs.We visit saints, not necessarily for new teachings. In their presence, we fell this freshness, we perceive the living embodimentof the saying 'navo navo bhavati'.

Every saint and ( why not?) each one of us lives life of freshness. Only we are not aware of it. When one lives life in thefreshness of every moment - that is the spiritual life. Not following a technique or a pattern; not stopping or arriving at a conclusion. But endless, conscious, moment to moment living.

The one striking quality one observes in Saints and Sages is that they are always fresh. One may go to them with a problem,and when one leaves them the problem may or may not have been solved. But one leaves inspired with a sense of renewal.

'We are the light of the world', says Jesus. He also says: 'Be light unto yourselves.' One is told that 'light' which means radiance,also means 'not heavy'. So be light and be a light. Comparisons and contrasts, agreements and contradictions, all heat and nolight? Is this the Vidya or Knowledge which leads to Vimukti or Freedom?

Bhagavan Ramana says, 'Know that in the minds of the learned there are not one but many families consisting of books andthese form obstacles to their spiritual progress.' To a close disciple, who wanted to leave the Asramam, acquire Vedantic learning and return, He said, 'There is no end to this. But if you abide in your Self, the answer to any question will rebound likean echo from within your heart.'

Abide in the Self. Be yourself. To be oneself is to know one self and vice versa.

Bhagavan Ramana repeatedly asks us to cast away, sweep away, rather than add, acquire and accumulate. Not to becomeanybody but to BE yourself. He is indeed the Supreme Prophet of Being.

Once Maharshi said, 'If there is no God within you, be assured, there is no God outside you, If there is no Truth within you, there is no Truth outside you, That is the negative - concept of the truth, as outside of you. The truth that is withinyou, nobody can take away from you. That is positive. We are always dealing with names and forms, and from accumulatedknowledge the mind projects a concept of truth. As Maharshi said, 'Names and forms are like the film projected on a whitescreen.' You are the white screen. You are not a concept. This, that you are reading is immaterial. The living principle,the One Who is Reading it, is the Truth.

Somebody asked the Maharshi, 'Is it not hypnotism that you are talking about?' He laughed and replied: 'You are alreadyhypnotized, that you are the body, that you must make effort to reach somewhere. What I am telling you is to de-hypnotize yourself from all these concepts.'

Are we prepared to de-hypnotize ourselves? Somebody remarked, looking at Maharshi seated on a comfortable couchstretching Himself on it with ease: 'Nothing is difficult for you! You are so comfortably seated there and enjoying your life!'Maharshi smiled and said, 'Come on, sit down for a few minutes, without any thought, without any movement.' Noteven for a few seconds could the devotee do so!

We make so much effort to improve, to change our lives, to live happily. Have paid any attention to life itself?Pay a little attention to that which sees all. Instead of paying attention to what is being done, pay attention to the doer. Instead of emphasizing what you see, what you have hear, shift your emphasis to the Seer, the hearer.'The Kingdom of heaven is within you.'

Yet we seem to prefer to gather words, words which merely yield verbal clarity. Maharshi portrayed this predicamentwith a telling illustration. A thief, to catch a thief, turns himself to a policeman to catch the thief who is himself.Will the mind pave the way for its own destruction?

Someone asked Maharshi: 'If we remain in that state, how can we attend to worldly activity?' Maharshi replied, 'With an imperfect,diluted mind, you can claim to have accomplished so much. But that very mind gets its light from the Self only. Just as all living beings get energy from the Sun, this thinking process gets energy from the Self. If borrowed glory can achieve so much,is it difficult to conceive that with the Source Energy and you would be better equipped?'

Paul Brunton asked Maharshi: 'Maharshi! You in a jungle ashram. It is alright. There are no problems here, no crowds,nothing. But I have to go back to London, the thick of London, the thick of New York. What can I do?' Maharshi smiledand replied: 'Who says this? That the jungle ashram is free from problems, and the thick of London or the thick of NewYork is full of problems, who says so?' It is Brunton's mind. So where is the problem.

Though the first glimpse of Maharshi put Brunton into the state of no thought, his mind returned in full force. He was saying,'I have to work. How can I work if I practice this?' Maharshi said that there there is no contradiction between work and wisdom.

The magic quest Know Thyself popularly attributed to Socrates, has gripped the attention of the greatest seers, sagesand thinkers of all ages. It is the essential experience welling up from the hearts of yearning souls belonging to everycountry of the world. In giving expression to it, the terminologies, the words and the languages may differ, but the essencein its content is the same.

The command of Vedanta is Aatmaanaaam Viddhi - Know Thyself. In fact this experiential dictum is the backbone of alleastern religions, though it is true that the essence of this dictum is too fundamental to be classified under any philosophy,or thinker, or age. That is 'knowing the knower' is the aim of all spiritual striving, in all ages and of all religions. Not to knowthe knower and yet to know all else is termed as 'total ignorance' - moola avidya. Hence very great importance is given to knowing the Self. 'Know Thyself' is the same as 'Know who you are'. Inquiring 'Who am I?' or seeking 'Whence am I?' is the direct means. This quest is the fundamental teaching of Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi.

'Simple Being is the Self,' said the Maharshi. This being is Consciousness. The very living principle of each one of us isthis Consciousness. Any form of awareness is imbedded only in this vast expanse of Consciousness. The triple principledominating man's activities, called triputi, comprising the knower, the object known, and the act of knowing, occurs onlyin Consciousness. Experiences are classified into avastha thraya - the waking, dreaming and the deep sleep states, -- whichalso take place only in Consciousness. Likewise, the pairs of opposites, called dhwandhava, like right and wrong, good and bad,day and night, or concepts like being and non being, get exposed only in the backdrop of Consciousness.

Thus, Consciousness is the ground or screen on which the play of the triputi, avastha thraya, and dhwandhva is enactedendlessly. While one is aware constantly and gets involved deeply in this drama, the basis or stratum on which the play takes place is totally forgotten.

'By whom?'

To turn one's attention from the details or activities to the source of the activity is called 'introspection'. This turning inwardis the beginning of spiritual effort, called Sadhana.

When Consciousness is confined to an individual, or the body, it gets clouded by this manifestation, resulting in the ego,drawing boundaries on the Self with reference to the manifestation and mistaking this to be the Self.

Ego has no existence apart from the Self, like gold ornaments having no existence apart from the gold. But, the Self existsalways. Ego is only a shadow of the Self. It catches hold of a body and through it, projects itself as the Self. Thus theego thrives in the multiplicities as a conscious perceiver and enjoyer of the world. It hops from one to another, since noform is permanent. Such movement of the transient is called the cycle of births and deaths. This limitation is technically termed Samsara. Freedom from such bondage is called Moksha, i.e. re-establishment in total Consciousness.

Abidance as Pure Consciousness is the ultimate goal of human life - the release from the ego!

Through Atma Vichara, Self Inquiry, release from the bonds of ego is gained. This is the process of 'Who am I?'- inquiry', the technique to 'Know Oneself.' The bondage is the ego. The bondage is for the ego. Consciousness,conditioning or identifying itself with a body is this ego. The ego exists, say the scriptures, due to non inquiry --avichara. This avichara is sustained and strengthened by avidya -- the ignorance. Consciousness is pure attentionalone. When attention is held unmoved, there is no place for ego or non attention. To hold the attention on itself, todissolve or transform non attention into Total Attention, Total Consciousness, the quest 'Who am I?' is the vital process.

To turn one's attention on oneself is the essence of true knowledge. Such Self attention is the key to open the mystery gatesto the immeasurable treasure; 'knowing the knower! The knower known, there is none else, nothing else to be known.To remain as Pure Consciousness is the secret meaning of 'Know Thyself.'

Bhagavan Ramana put it all in a sutra-aphorism. He summarized the whole process in four pregnant words: deham, naham, koham and soham.

Deham - Body, symbolizing all objective and subjective perceptions.

Naham - I am not.

Koham - Who am I?

Soham - I am Sivam or Consciousness.

Rid of all vestures, vehicles, masks, conveyances, and camouflages, Pure Consciousness alone will shine if the inquiryWho am I? is relentlessly pursued within. Such Atma Vichara releases one from bondage. Release from bondage and dawningof Wisdom are simultaneous, like the coming of the light and ending of darkness are spontaneous.

In this grand journey, within, the Guru's Grace is absolutely essential. For one who is ready to plunge within, Guru'sGrace is totally assured. This grace is felt by one dedicating himself to the pursuit of Self Inquiry, through a deepening peace welling up in him, independent of life's circumstances.